بسم الله الرحمان الرحيم
The scholars mention that the first person to ever seek knowledge was Adam, peace be upon him, immediately after his creation. Bukhari and Muslim narrate that the Prophet, sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said that ”Allah created Adam… and when He had created him, He said to him: ’Go and greet that group’ – they were a group of angels sitting – ‘and listen to their greeting to you, for it shall be your greeting and that of your offspring’”
The scholars mentioned in the explanation of the hadith that the angels were far away, and that Adam had to travel a distance to reach them and learn the greeting, and that this is an indication of the superiority of travelling to seek knowledge, and that he was the first to undertake a journey for such, peace be upon him”.
[Safahat min Sabr al Ulama p 34]
